My Bite
by RixxiSpooks
Summary: As JD drowns his sorrows in beer after a long day at work he forgets a second rhyme other than 'Righty tighty, lefty loosey' and this time it's more life threatening. 'Red and yellow, kill a fellow. Red and black, venom lack'.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, I'm new to Scrubs fics but this idea just came to me so I had to write it. Sorry if the medical jargon isn't up to scratch.**

JD was sitting on his porch humming to himself, he was slightly….tipsy. Ok, a little more than tipsy; he was completely pissed. He had had a bad day with three patients dying on him including a five year old girl with leukemia and at the end of it, to top it off; Doctor Cox had given him a huge tongue lashing about not getting involved too much with the patients and how he was a rubbish doctor.

"You're a pansy aren't you, Kylie?!" he yelled to which JD had replied, very stupidly admittedly.

"Not a pansy, more of a peony." This caused Cox to make the most disgusted face he could muster, throw his hands in the air and storm off to torment Nervous Guy.

Now JD was drowning in his sorrows and staring puzzled at the brown beer bottle in his hand not sure how it had got empty so soon.

"Ah, well, must be time for annuder," he slurred and bent over the arm of his chair to reach into the box beside him. It was empty. "Damn." He muttered half heartedly to himself and stood up shakily. "Maybe I should go back to the apartment." He pondered the option and then shook his head. "Nah! More beer! Where did I leave the other box?"

As JD rummaged around the junk he'd collected on his wooden porch for the pack of alcohol his hand ran over something lithe and rough, he drew his hand back abruptly. "Whaz tha'?" he frowned and clicked on the torch that was hanging off the random coat stand beside him. It was a snake. "Well aren't you pwetty?" The reptile was beautiful in color with red, black and white rings. As any normal guy, despite what Dr Cox said, JD jumped on the chance to catch a snake. He'd wanted to hold them ever since he was a little kid and remembered when he was with his brother snake hunting in the yard. He never did find one.

Some part of rationality sparked at the back of his sluggish brain and he remembered some snakes could be venomous and this might be a coral snake. What was the rhyme again, he could never remember, 'Red and yellow….the snake's mellow? Yellow? Oh, I don't know. Here snakey, snakey." JD reached forward to grab the snake's mid-body, in his drunken stupor he did not think of the repercussions of what this may do, and gripped the scaly flesh

The snake hissed, clearly startled and whipped around, its small head shooting towards it's attacker's bare arm. It's jaws open and it sunk its small, hollow fangs into the man's skin. He tried to withdraw his arm, feeling the sharp pain in his limb but the snake refused to release its grip, chewing on the flesh.

"Owie, gerroff," JD squeaked and tugged at the snake, trying to extricate its fangs. Finally the reptile let go and dropped onto the wooden boards of the porch before slithering off into the shadows, "That wasn't very nice, snake."

JD looked at his arm, frowning, after the initial bite it didn't hurt much any more but it was bleeding slightly. He scuffled in his over-the-shoulder bag for a tissue and dabbed at the wound. Then he went back in search of his beer, his mind still a bit of a haze from the alcohol. Once he found it he sat back down on his chair and found himself dozing off although he would have to get up in ten hours for his eight o'clock shift.

The young resident stumbled into work at three minutes past six, yawning loudly, barely able to open his eyes. He really shouldn't have drank so much last night, he couldn't remember anything of the evening. He chucked his bag in his locker and then headed for the desk to get a chart and a patient. As he leant against the counter he was aware of a very strange feeling in his arm. Like one he'd never experienced before. His arm had gone numb, as if some shell had covered it except for a a small pain, like a splinter half way down his forearm.

"Nancy! What are you doing? Haven't you got a patient to torment with your girly charm and natural flowery aura?" A voice barked behind him and he turned lethargically to see Dr Cox stood there. "Well?"

"Yes, Dr Cox," JD sighed and picked up a chart but it slipped from his fingers suddenly and he frowned as it clattered back in the rack.

"Good god, Penelope, can your weak little arms not even manage a chart?" Dr Cox grinned causing JD to scowl and grab the chart more fiercely this time and stride off.

After treating several patients JD was aware that something was wrong with him. He was getting slightly dizzy and when his throat was extremely dry because every time he tried to swallow his muscles wouldn't contract.

He decided to head to the bathroom. After splashing his face he looked at his face in the mirror. He really should get some more sleep, he had huge, dark circles beneath his eyes. JD groaned, knowing he would have to go back to work and face his condescending, sadistic mentor soon.

Leaving the safety and solitude of the bathroom JD found his way back to the reception and the nurses station.

"Bambi! How you doing?" Carla greeted him, a huge smile on her face.

"Good morning or is it afternoon?" JD yawned back, his words slurring together slightly.

"Tired?"

"Yeah, should've slept more instead of drinking. You know, its not very comfortable sleeping outside in a chair."

"Oh, Bambi, you didn't," Carla shook her head at the young resident, "Are you drunk or do you have a cold? You're slurring your words." She looked concerned.

"No-no, its nothing," JD shook his head trying desperately to ignore the spreading numbness in his left side. Now it was almost his whole arm and he couldn't move it. This was getting scary. Plus the not swallowing was making it harder for him to breathe and his was getting a bit raspy.

"Sally, no Barbara, Isabelle, Evie…yes," Dr Cox muttered to himself as he approached Newbie who was leaning rather heavily on the reception desk, "Evie! This no time to have a girly chat with your friends. Patients to see; lives to save! Besides, I need you to cover my patients as I watch my show. Ok, Verity?"

The attending was surprised by the fact JD didn't even acknowledge his being there much less reply.

"Oi, Newbie! I was talking to you. JD?!" Dr Cox finally used his resident's real name if just to provoke a reaction.

"Wha-oh sorry, Dr Cox," JD rubbed his arm and blinked, trying to get over the overwhelming dizziness he'd just experienced.

"Yes, well I'd prefer it if you actually replied to me when I addressed you."

"Well at least it got you to refer to me by my real name," JD joked, weakly.

"What? I though your real name was Lucinda?" Dr Cox retorted before looking more closely at the young doctor, "Are you alright, Newbie?"

"Yeah…why wouldn't I be?" JD lied through his teeth and he wasn't even sure why. He was a doctor, he knew how important it was to get things treated as soon as possible. Suddenly he was struck by the fact it was getting even more difficult to breathe, his airway felt like it was closing.

"Ok, then, I'll go and watch my show. You can have my chart," Perry began walking away.

"Wait!" JD gasped, grabbing for his mentor's sleeve, "Help."

Dr Cox turned and frowned for a moment before seeing the kid actually was in trouble. He was gasping and struggling to draw any breaths. JD then sank to his knees, clutching his throat, eyes wide.

"Hey, JD! Kid!" the mentor dropped all pretenses and the charade of being the cold, hard, unemotional Dr Cox, dropping down beside his protégé, "I need a gurney over here, now! Carla! Some help! Ok, kid, calm down try and breathe slow, deep breaths." Carla, who up until this point had been frozen to the spot leaped into action and rushed to aide the attending.

JD shook his head frantically, clearly distressed before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he became unconscious.

"Where the hell is that gurney?!" Dr Cox roared just as it arrived and JD was swiftly but gently loaded onto it and hurried into a room where he was hooked up to a pulse ox monitor, IV fluids and cardiac monitor.

"I'll have to intubate him," Dr Cox decided grudgingly, "He's in severe respiratory failure." Suddenly one of the machines began beeping furiously as the heart monitor showed an irregular, fast rhythm.

"He's also in tachycardia. We need to shock him. Everyone stand back," one of the unnamed residents had joined in the group and was holding the paddles. Everyone did as they were told and Dr Cox winced as Newbie's body arched under the electric shock.

He couldn't believe JD had ended up like this. What the hell was wrong with the kid? Why hadn't he displayed any obvious symptoms before? What was going on? And why the hell was he getting so worked up over the overenthusiastic, excitable resident. "Because I care about him," a voice at the back of his head told him. "Well, we better find out what's wrong with him before you lose him."

**What do you think? I dont know much about snakes and bites so I'm sorry! Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm so glad you like the idea of this story! I'm sorry but it's not going to be a slash story, just very close friendship. **

"What the hell is wrong with him?" Turk thumped the wall of the Doctor's lounge, hard and kicked a chair ferociously.

"Baby, don't do that, you'll hurt yourself," Carla protested.

"Yeah, Gandhi, leave hospital property alone and help us come up with ideas about what could be wrong with the sleeping princess who I know you love so much," Dr Cox supplied, not particularly helping matters.

"Shut up, Dr Cox!" Turk pointed a finger furiously at the attending, "This is no time for jokes and stupid annoying nicknames! This is serious. My best friend could be dying for Christ's sake."

"You think I don't know that, _Gandhi_?" Dr Cox replied, pushing Turk's accusing finger down, "Newbie is in a critical condition and we haven't a clue what the hell is wrong with him! But you hitting the wall and taking your anger out on hospital furniture is not gonna help matters. We need to sit back and think. Does anyone know of any symptoms the kid was experiencing before he went into respiratory failure?"

He was met by blank stares from both the people in the room.

"So you're telling me that being his _friends_ neither of you noticed any change in his behaviour or appearance?" Dr Cox rolled his eyes in frustration, "Some buddies you are."

"Wait, I did notice something," Carla piped up, "I wasn't sure. I thought maybe he was drunk or had a cold or something but he was slurring his words a bit."

"Ok, I don't know how useful that will be."

"Oh, and he kept complaining he was so tired and….he said he was dizzy, I remember now!"

"Well, thanks for keeping that to yourself for this amount of time, Carla," the attending scowled at her, "Personally I noticed very little difference in his behaviour as you know I don't really pay Newbie bucket loads of attention but…at one point…he seemed to struggle with picking up a chart so that may be an indicator of muscle weakness." Perry sighed, shook his head and sat down heavily on a chair.

"We still haven't had the lab results back; maybe toxicology will report something," Carla suggested.

"The kid may not have that long," Cox admitted.

* * *

Suddenly the door burst open and in tumbled Elliot. They all realised they had forgotten all about her and the fact she didn't know about JD.

"Hey, guys, why the glum faces?!" she grinned widely causing Dr Cox to grunt, irritated, and leave the room, hitting her shoulder as he went.

"What's up with him? You will never guess what I did last night…"

"Elliot."

"What?" Elliot frowned, perplexed.

"It's JD."

* * *

JD was crashing again and Perry was yelling furiously at everyone to get their butts moving or they'd be out of the hospital so fast their heads would spin. He couldn't let the kid die. No chance. The boy was pretty much the soul of the hospital and although Dr Cox would never admit it he cared a lot for him.

"Shocking. Stand back!"

Once JD was stable again and in a private room in ICU, Dr Cox collapsed in a chair by his beside and stared at the lifeless body. He was pale, white almost. It was disturbing to think Newbie was usually so bouncy and happy, like an overeager puppy wanting to please its master. Now he may never wake up again. The only thing declaring he was still fighting for his life was the steady rhythm and bleeping on the monitors.

"Perry! Come out here," the voice of Bob Kelso travelled through the open doorway and to his ears. Groaning, the man stood and headed over to talk to his boss, "Ah, Perry. Let me ask you a question."

"What is it, Bob?" Dr Cox asked, too exhausted to come up with a clever quip.

"Do I pay you to sit on your ass all day?" Kelso shouted.

"No, but you see…that is um…one of our doctors."

"Yes, I am aware of the patient's identity," Bob replied, "But that does not excuse shirking your duties as the attending here. You should be tending to your patients. Now go."

"But, Bob, he keeps crashing, I need to stay and help…" Dr Cox protested.

"If you want to keep your job then you will do as I say!" Kelso ordered. Perry growled deep in his throat before pushing passed his senior and striding off.

* * *

On his way to a patient Dr Cox passed Doug and he halted abruptly. "Nervous Guy!" He barked at the quivering man who had frozen beside him.

"Yes, sir," Doug whispered, terrified.

"I know you are a useless trembling wreck of a man that still lives with his mother…"

"Um…actually, that's Ted," Doug pointed out, "I have my own apartment."

"Yes, well that's nice but as I was saying. I need you to keep an eye on Newbie's condition. No one will notice your absence and at least you'll stop killing patients. Monitor his vitals studiously, don't leave his side! If you do…lets just say you will live in fear for the rest of your life."

"Er…I already do, sir."

"Shut up! I am talking; you listen. Got it? Now, look after Newbie, if anything goes wrong come and get me personally. Don't page me, just get me. Will you blink please?!"

"Yes sir, sorry sir," Nervous Guy blinked furiously, "I'll go now."

"Good."

* * *

Doug Murphy sat beside JD's bed staring intently at the heart monitor, his eyes not leaving it for a moment, barely blinking. The green line remained constant and steady, zigzagging up and down. He could not let Doctor Cox down otherwise he may not make it out of the hospital alive. He didn't fancy ending up in the morgue with a scalpel in his heart.

As he watched the monitor religiously something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. He really didn't want to extricate his eyes from the screen but he was so tempted to look. He needed to look. Yanking his gaze away from the machine he looked at the patient's arm.

There was something peculiar. Halfway down the underside of JD's forearm was a tiny scab. Two tiny scabs in fact. As Doug looked closer, lifting the limb so he could see better, his eyes narrowing in concentration, he saw the skin was very slightly, barely visibly, swollen around the marks. It could be coincidence but he had a feeling this might be something of important. He dropped the arm back down on the bed but didn't realise it landed with the scabs hidden.

Leaping to his feet he ran out of the room so fast that he tripped over one of the wires at the end of the bed and went sprawling, cracking his head on the door frame as he went and knocking himself out cold. Him falling over the wires caused the connections between JD and the heart monitor to break and the screen supposedly flat lined.

* * *

Dr Cox who had been coming out of the bathroom at the time heard the whining of the machine coming from JD's room and his heart almost stopped. He sprinted towards the room, just ahead of Turk who seemed to have appeared from nowhere and skidded through the door taking in the scene.

His relief at seeing the heart monitor was only disconnected turned to anger when he saw Nervous Guy unconscious on the floor, a small trickle of blood making its way down his forehead.

"You stupid, little…!" Dr Cox could not think of words to describe his feelings towards Doug at this moment in time, "Get him out of my sight!" He yelled before striding over, reconnecting JD and slumping down beside him, "Want a job doing, do it yourself."

Turk called for a gurney as Doug still hadn't regained consciousness and he was carted away for a CT scan to see the extent of the bash on his skull. His discovery still remaining unknown.

**What did you think? Did you think that Nervous Guy was gonna tell everyone and JD was gonna be saved? Nothings that easy! Mwhaha! Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, next chapter for you guys. I am glad the story has been received so well but I would just like to clarify a few things. **

**Firstly, I did research meticulously on the internet for certain snakes bites. Some of which like vipers and rattlesnakes are pretty deadly but their bite takes effect within a few minutes. **

**Secondly, I made sure I chose an interesting, more difficult snake that's bites are different to all the others. The coral snake, which's bite slowly, paralyses the victim after gripping and chewing over quite a long period of time. It can be up to twelve hours before any symptoms become apparent which is why the bite is sometimes missed or thought less dangerous than it is! **

**I hope that clears some stuff up for you wondering why JD is not dead yet! **

**Thirdly, sorry, the character's may be OOC! I'm still new to this.**

Doug was knocked out in a hospital bed, JD was still unconscious in ICU fighting for his life and the staff of Sacred Heart were going in circles trying to work out the cause of JD's rapidly worsening state.

Dr Cox had given up completely on patients other than the young resident despite Kelso's threats. He didn't care what the old jackass would do. He was now sitting next to JD's bed sifting through charts and information on his condition keeping watch on the vitals.

Gandhi, Barbie and Carla drifted in every so often but Dr Cox knew they didn't like hanging around their friend when he was in this state. It unnerved them to see someone so close so ill. Every time Barbie came in especially she dissolved into tears and had to run off and hide in a closet.

"What is wrong with you, Rebecca?" Dr Cox muttered to JD, "Why can't you ever give me any peace? And why the hell do I seem to care for your girly little ass?"

There was no reply as expected. The young man remained unconscious, an awkward tube down his throat, an IV in his right arm and several wires attached in other places. Usually the attending would be unaffected by such a sight as he saw some of his patients like this everyday but this was Newbie. The kid that acted like a weak little girl most of the time who cared too much about his patients but the other times having random spurts where he got some balls and rebelled against Cox which was infuriating. But occasionally, when this happened, Perry felt a small surge of pride like a father when his son gets in his first fight but that was soon quashed to be replaced by indifference again.

Dr Cox promised himself, though he doubted he would actually keep it, that he would give the kid more respect if he got better. But that seemed like a big _if_ at this point in time and Perry wasn't sure whether he would ever actually have to carry out that promise.

* * *

"Smile, Turk, you need to be strong."

"Baby, I just can't believe it. How come he never told us anything was wrong?" Turk leant on the desk by the nurses' station.

"Well, he might not even have known what was wrong if we don't," Carla pointed out.

"Yeah, but as Dr Cox said neither of us noticed that he wasn't looking or acting too great. Some friends we are. He's my _best _friend, Carla!"

"I know, I know he means more to you than a brother but that doesn't mean he can't hide stuff from you and you can't protect him over everything, baby."

"But I'm…I should've…oh, someone should phone Dan! In case, you know, he…" Turk trailed off not wanting to finish his sentence.

"I'll do it, you go relax. JD is going to be fine, baby," Carla comforted her husband, "How about you go home and look after Isabella for a bit?"

"Yeah, I'll do that but promise me you'll phone if anything happens, ok?"

"Yes."

* * *

Dan was busy trying to cook dinner, the key word being _trying _considering he'd already burnt the mince and completely overcooked the spaghetti so it was mush. The girl he was having over he'd met at the bar and this was surprisingly the second date. Dan had decided he should maybe try and hold down a relationship maybe see if he could become a better man.

He hoped Charlie wouldn't arrive too soon because he hadn't laid the table or changed his shirt. As he tugged the pan off the heat he swore as some of the boiling brown liquid slopped onto his hand and he dropped the whole lot on the floor.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! No!" groaning he bent down to see if he could retrieve some of the mince but stopped as the phone rang, "Why now?!"

Hurrying over, Dan snatched the phone from its cradle and brought it to his ear. He wondered who it could be. At first he didn't recognise the voice but then he realised.

"Hello, is that Dan?"

"Carla!" he grinned, "Always nice to talk to a beautiful woman. What can I do you for?"

"Dan, shh," she sounded slightly tearful at the other end of the phone and Dan frowned, worry tugging at the corners of his mind.

"What is it, Carla? Turk-man alright?"

"Yeah, Dan, it's JD." At this point Dan froze, several thoughts whizzing, did she mean she's JD which would be kinda weird, or that something was up with his little bro or that she was about to pass him over to Johnny?

"Er….yeah?"

"Dan! He's ill and we don't know what's wrong with him."

"I though you guys were supposed to be doctors? Shouldn't you know what's up with Johnny?" Dan asked, the implications of Carla's distraught voice not quite clicking.

"No, he just collapsed. He's having respiratory support and he's crashed several times. He's in critical condition."

"Oh, I'll come down then," Dan said in a slightly shell shocked voice, "See you soon. Don't let him die before I get there." With that he put the phone down with a bang. He guessed he better cancel his date.

* * *

Isabella Turk struggled slightly in her father's arms, her tiny hands clasping and unclasping on his jacket material. She gurgled, a small bubble forming on her lips as she looked up innocently at her father.

"Shh, baby, this is a hospital. People are sick here, you gotta be quiet," Turk whispered to the baby girl. The infant made an incoherent noise but then fell silent as they arrived at the nurse's station where they were met by a surprised Carla.

"Honey, what have I told you about bringing Izzi here? It's not good for a young baby to be exposed to all these bugs."

"Yeah, but I had to look after her and I couldn't stay at home waiting. I need to be here with JD. Besides, Izzi wants to visit her uncle J-Dizzle and help make him better," the surgeon replied.

"Fine, but just stay in Bambi's room, ok? I think Dr Cox left a few minutes ago so there's no one in there."

* * *

Turk strode into the ICU room, clutching Isabella carefully to his chest, before sitting down on the recently vacated chair beside his friend's bed.

"Hey, Vanilla Bear," he greeted the unconscious man, "How's it going? I know you're not particularly in a state to reply but it's rude not to ask, you know? Anyway, Rowdy's missing you already. He's pining. I couldn't bring him as dogs aren't allowed in the hospital."

"Gah," Isabella added, dribbling and reaching out for JD.

"Hey, watch it, baby, I nearly dropped you there. D'you wanna hug your uncle JD?" Turk leaned towards the bed and placed Izzi gently on the edge, supporting her with his hands.

The infant wriggled forward and grabbed for the man's pale arm. She couldn't get a good grip on the limb but she did succeed in pushing it slightly causing a different area of the arm to come into view. The part with the bite.

**Duh, duh, duuuh! God, for me its like ten in the evening for you guys in America is it like four in the afternoon? I'm tired! Gotta go to bed. Review so I can have a full inbox in the morning!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Wow, glad you guys liked it. Sorry for not updating but I've had seriously bad writer's block for this story and it may have somewhat affected this chapter. Apologies if it has but I tried. Enjoy - hopefully.**

A nervous, jumpy little woman dressed in a floral shirt and bright pink pants handed Dr Cox an envelope to him with what he knew to be JD's toxicology reports in. Usually he would've made some callous remark about her flowery attire but today he was just not in the mood.

Swiftly he ripped open the envelope and revealed the paper within. With well practised, expert eyes he scanned the sheet and his jaw slowly dropped open.

"Jesus," he breathed, unable to believe it, it seemed too far-fetched, too unlikely to actually be true.

Just at that moment Gandhi barrelled out of JD's room with a look of excitement and triumph plastered all over his face and a gurgling baby under his arm. In the other direction, at the same time, the slightly groggy head of Nervous Guy also appeared. In unison they both spoke. "I know what's wrong with JD…."

"Yes, I know, he's been bitten by a highly venomous, extremely dangerous coral snake and only has an hour or two to live if he isn't given the anti-venom."

"Well, actually I was gonna say V-bear has a scab that looks like a snake bite on his arm but how did you….how the hell? How did you know that?" Turk trailed off, astounded.

"I know everything," Dr Cox replied sarcastically and headed for the Doctor's lounge.

"You know, I'm actually starting to believe that," the young surgeon answered truthfully, following the older man, "Where are you going, JD's room is thatta way."

"To find a book. I know nothing about coral snake bites and unless you are some expert I'm gonna say we need some help."

"Oh, no I don't," Turk shook his head, placing his baby in the waiting arms of a nurse, "Let's get reading then!"

* * *

Once the two men had poured over all the snake bite books in the lounge they found one that instructed them of what to do. Dr Cox read down the list of symptoms whilst he was looking at the step by step guide to treatment and sighed. Newbie had portrayed all of those symptoms even though they'd only picked up on a few. It was quite demoralising to think that he, as a fully qualified, experienced doctor, didn't notice anything mildly suspicious before it was too late.

"Ok, we need _Micrurus fulvius_ Antivenin and I'm guessing we don't have that in the hospital pharmacy."

"Nope, well guessed Gandhi, top marks for using that big bald head of yours, now, get your butt moving and contact all the zoos and research centers in this area to see if you can get hold of some of that stuff. Be quick about it though, the fairy princess doesn't have much time," Dr Cox ordered, resuming his normal patronizing, irritating comments.

Turk shot him a withering look as he left the room, he had hoped that maybe the trauma of JD's hospitalization would've knocked some feeling into that guy but seems not. He hurried over to the phone at the nurse's station sparing a quick glance into JD's room before dialing. He just hoped getting this antivenin would be as simple as Dr Cox made it sound and that his buddy wouldn't crash in that time.

* * *

After several fruitless phone calls to the surrounding area zoos Turk was getting increasingly frustrated. How come no one in this goddamned city had any anti-venom?! Surely at least one should have some that specialized in coral snake bites but at each zoo he had been told that bites were extremely rare and they didn't stock the stuff needed. Trust JD to get bitten by that reptile then.

He jabbed in another number from the list he had obtained from a file and waited for the line to pick up.

"Hello, this is Jeanie from Harry Tyson's Research Facility, how can I help?" said the pleasant female voice on the other end of the phone.

"Um…hey, my name is Dr Chris Turk and I work at Sacred Heart Hospital. We have a victim in here with a severe coral snake bite and we need the antivenin _Micrurus fulvius,_ do you have it?"

"Er….I think we have," the woman replied and Turk felt his heart leap with excitement, "Yes, they've been seeing which coral snakes mate better: the Texas coral snake or the Sonoran coral snake so they needed the ani-venom as a precaution."

"Ok, well, can I have some of that stuff, please?" Turk could barely contain his joy at finding anti-venom for Vanilla Bear.

"Sure, we'll send some over. It should probably take about thirty minutes," Jeanie answered kindly.

"Thank you! Thanks so much! Bye!" the surgeon spoke with sincere gratitude and then put the phone down, "Dr Cox! Dr Cox! I've got the antivenin, its coming over right now!"

"That's great Gandhi but Sylvia is crashing," Perry replied, sprinting towards JD's room.

"Oh no! You have got to be kidding me."

* * *

They were getting desperate, nothing seemed to be working. No matter how many times they shocked JD he remained in the same dire state.

"Come on, Newbie!" Dr Cox growled, "You are not escaping me that easily!" He placed the paddles on the naked torso of the young man and barked at everyone to stand back. The kid's body jerked violently as the shock coursed through his system but after the initial judder nothing else happened and the machine by his side continued to beep shrilly.

"Shock him again," Turk ordered.

"What's the point? It's gonna have no affect just like all those times before."

"But we can't just give up on him!" the young surgeon replied, shaking his head, "I can't let my best buddy down."

Suddenly, Carla burst through the door, a box in her hand. On the side of the box was a symbol, two snakes entwined around a red cross. It was the antivenin.

"I have it!"

"Great, instead of just flailing it around like a dead cat will you bring it over here?" Dr Cox demanded oblivious to Carla's glare, "Right, we need to give him 3-6 vials in his IV over the first one or two hours. If there is no change then we'll give him 3-5 more, ok?"

"All right," Carla nodded, connecting the small vials of liquid up to her friend's intravenous line. It seemed such a little thing to save his life.

Once the nurse had completed this task Dr Cox nodded, satisfied and then moved in again with the paddles to resume saving the kid's life in the short term. Fortunately, as if by some miracle, on the next zap from the paddles, the machine stopped screaming and all of the young doctor's functions returned to normal.

"Jesus, that was too close," Turk shook his head unbelievingly, "What now?"

"Now? Well now we just hope that Helena here is stronger than she looks and she pulls through."

"But, shouldn't he be fine now he has the drugs?"

"It may have been too late," Perry shrugged, non-committed.

**Dun dun duuuh. Well, you know my previous track record for updating and its shoddy so sorry if the next chapter takes years - literally. Review though and it may get my lazy butt moving.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Edits: Thanks to ND for telling me I had JD having his intubation tube out twice. I've corrected it. And also to your other comment they didn't know what antivenin they needed to look for so they had to look :) Docs may be clever but they don't know every cure.**

JD stirred in his bed, his eyes fluttering open momentarily only to be snapped shut again to avoid the blinding white light of the hospital. There was something down his throat; he could feel it, hard and uncomfortable. Immediately the doctor side of him told him that it was a tube to assist in his breathing. He must've been intubated. Did that mean he went into respiratory failure? What from though?

He remembered feeling crap all through the morning but he just put that down to his huge overdose in beer the night before. He also remembered the extremely terrifying experience of his airway beginning to close. That must have been why he was being given respiratory support.

Again the man's eyes struggled to open, prising apart the sticky substance that had caked his lashes. Once he finally managed to get them fully open he blinked several times before looking around him. He was restricted to what he could see because of the intubation tube but he could still get a pretty good idea of his surroundings. He was in a hospital room that much was clear, a private one in ICU, he recognised the defining features of the otherwise empty room: the window, the side table, the colour of the bed sheets.

He craned his neck to see if he could spot any more clues and was astonished at what he did see. There, sprawled at the foot of his bed, head pillowed in arms was none other than Doctor Cox. JD's eyes widened in surprise, he would never have expected his mentor to be by his bedside in a million years and by the looks of him – and the smell – he'd been there awhile. Then again, JD reminded himself, he did see the look of concern in the older man's eyes when he collapsed. That had shocked him too.

The young man was still in the dark about what his ailment was however. What could've caused him to stop breathing and collapse? JD guessed he would just have to wait for Doctor Cox to wake up and inform him probably in his usual know-it-all way. Even if he had nearly died JD doubted whether it would change the relationship between him and Perry Cox in any way.

Suddenly there was a sharp rap on the door and Doctor Cox practically leapt off the foot of the bed his eyes springing open. He looked around abruptly towards the door and barked at whoever the jackass was to come in. The visitor did just that pushing the wood open with some caution before stepping into the room. It was Dan.

JD would have yelped in surprise had he not be obstructed by the tube in his throat. He guessed it must have been bad for someone to call Dan, his completely unreliable, way-ward brother down.

"Hey, Coxy, he okay?" Dan gestured towards the bed where he could see his brother lying.

"What d'you think, Idiot Number Two?" Dr Cox grunted incredulously.

"He's not gonna die?"

"No, but the little princess may yet become a vegetable for she was starved of precious oxygen to her already deprived brain."

"Oh," Dan nodded his unusually bright blue eyes even shinier than usual, "Have you found out how this happened?"

"Yes, but you'd never believe it."

"Try me, Coxy."

"Snake bit him, a coral snake."

JD's eyes widened in understanding and had either man looked in his direction they would've seen he was awake however they were too wrapped up in their conversation. He remembered that snake. It had been by the beer and it had bit him. The young doctor remembered the short sharp pain that had resided to a dull ache by the time he dozed off. He must've forgotten all about it in his drunken stupor.

"Jesus," Dan whispered, "Ain't they like real rare?"

"Yup, and trust good ol' Betty here to find the only one within probably the whole of this state."

JD was frustrated now, he wanted to talk, he needed to get their attention somehow. His body on the other hand seemed to not want to cooperate. His limbs felt weak and lethargic so it was a real effort just to move his arm. Somehow he managed it and lifted the limb for a second before it flopped back down on the bed. The sound of his skin slapping the material managed to gain their attention though.

"Ah, now the fairy princess decides it is time to wake up," Dr Cox announced seeing the injured man's open eyes, "Seems she is not destined to a life of vegetablism stuck in that re-he-ally tiny head of hers."

Although Dr Cox had immediately slipped back into his role of condescending, sarcastic mentor he couldn't help but feel eternally grateful to whatever higher power was out there for allowing Newbie another chance. Despite the charade he wasn't sure how he would've dealt with the actual death of his protégé. It had been odd for him to watch the kid tucked up in that hospital bed pale as the sheets he was under and as quiet as death. It had been unnerving not to have JD bouncing at his heels just waiting for the tiniest smidgen of praise or making random unfathomable comments about whatever went on in that head of his. The older man had to admit he was glad the kid was okay.

Dan however did not seemed so resigned to the fact that Dr Cox would continue to be Dr Cox no matter what happened to JD.

"Hey, don't speak to him like that, he nearly died for Christ's sake," Dan actually sounded angry like he had when he gave Perry the big brother speech all that time ago.

"I know that but Patricia is not exactly in a state to fight back so what else am I supposed to do. You don't expect me to go all lovey dovey and soppy on her, do ya?"

"Will you take that tube out then," Dan Dorian gestured to the intubation tube, "So he can defend himself."

"Oh, you know Newbie never defends himself, he just ignores. Maybe he's a stronger man than you for not retaliating. Ever thought of that, Dan?" Dr Cox said.

"You know, you're a bastard," Dan stated practically smouldering.

"I think I've just heard that about a million times. Can no one come up with more original interesting insults? I mean I've had bastard, coward, pig, asshole, jackass, jerk, fucking cock, dickhead, wanker and my personal favourite biiiiiiiiii-atch! Let's broaden the horizons a little bit! Become a little more creative. How about I start you off, hmm? Retarded-cockheaded-devil-spawned-shitweasel? Beat that!"

"You are a twisted and warped man with no sense of compassion who gains pleasure out of other people's misery and suffering. You enjoy seeing my brother squirm at your feet and it bolsters your already over-inflated ego to see him hanging on your every word no matter how many times you demean and insult him. Then, the one time he needs you, the one time he nearly fucking died and you don't give a shit! Why the hell did you even become a doctor? Why do people even think you're so great because I sure as hell don't see it! I've warned you before about abusing Johnny's trust and this time you've pushed it too far." With that Dan brought forward his fist and threw a bone shattering punch right into Dr Cox's cheek.


	6. Chapter 6

**Ok, this is the last chapter. Thanks for sticking with me and my shoddy updating schedule. I'm finishing it now because exams are coming up and I won't have time. Hope you like :)**

JD jumped in his bed, practically writhing to free himself of all the wires as he saw his mentor crumple like a puppet with its strings cut. He hadn't realised his brother could pack such a punch and obviously neither had Dr Cox otherwise he would've been prepared for the inevitable penance for his harsh words. Despite these words JD was still worried about the attending's health as he had fallen quite heavily.

Dan looked up from glaring at the collapsed man on the floor to see the shocked face of his little brother staring at him from the hospital bed, his eyes unnaturally wide and his hair crazier than usual. He felt a momentary surge of pride that he'd defended his brother but then, upon seeing the upset expression in JD's eyes, he felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for causing such a scene at the bed of a man who'd barely escaped death by a whisker.

With this feeling of guilt he was stuck between tending to his distressed brother and helping the sprawled form of Dr Cox on the floor. Fortunately he was saved the choice as Turk chose that moment to burst into the room with the words "What did I miss?" Then he caught sight of Perry and jumped to his aid.

By this time Perry Cox seemed to have gotten over the initial astonishment of being smashed in the face and he was holding a rapidly swelling cheekbone. He had moved from the prone position to the upright sitting stance and was shooting Dan a look that was a cross between anger and admiration. Eventually the tempest of feelings that seemed to be occupying his brain looked to have died away and he swatted Turk away before climbing shakily to his feet.

"Well done, Danny-boy, I know it took a helluva lotta balls for a squirt like you to do that," he nodded gruffly.

"What, you're not gonna throttle me?" Dan Dorian asked disbelievingly still waiting for a punch to the nose that would render him blind forever.

"Why should I? You stood your ground and said what you had to. We're in a hospital room after all and a sick man's bedside is hardly the place to start a brawl."

"Grmyth nargh-iaronch-blewh" a muffled, almost indecipherable sound came from the said man who had an annoyed look in his eyes. Both Turk and Dan were surprised to see the look of utter relief that passed over Dr Cox's rough facial features.

"Whaddya say, Kelsey?" the attending smirked in an almost fond way.

"V-bear said that he's not a _sick _man and if you're planning to start a fight he wants front row seats."

"Huh? He said all that?"

"Yup, well relatively speaking, I just added some bits," Turk shrugged after the translation, "It was the gist."

"Well, Newbie, don't break out the popcorn just yet," Dr Cox said feeling slightly odd because he couldn't seem to shake this small smile from his lips, "First I need to see some scans to see if that bad snakey did anything to your pea-sized brain. I'll take the intubation tube out first though, eh, princess?"

The attending physician strode over the bed and told JD to breathe out as long as he could so the tube could be pulled out of his throat. After the plastic had been extricated the younger man experienced a spasm of gut wrenching coughs that left his windpipe dry and sore. Dr Cox, upon seeing this offered him a glass of ice cool water which he accepted gratefully.

Turk and Dan, despite desperately wanting to talk to JD too saw that this was not the time to interrupt because Perry still had that strangely open look in his eye as he looked at the injured man as if he was getting ready to spill all of his inner secrets as soon as possible. They both knew they weren't welcome in this conversation. Instead they decided to head out and spread the good news to the rest of the hospital and some of the family that Dan had already called.

* * *

"Can't say I wouldn't have missed your sorry ass had you copped it," Dr Cox began slowly.

"Was that double negative somehow shrouding some true feelings?" JD asked slyly, feeling much better with the moistness of the water still lining his unused throat. It seemed strange to talk after this much time although it wasn't even a day yet. He supposed he was used to filling every living moment with speech and his mouth was never out of use.

"Don't get your girly hopes up, Edith. I'm not about to declare undying love for you as I for one don't swing that way," Perry barked quickly, "However, after today, with you almost dying on us after getting bitten by that damned snake, something shifted in me…"  
"A good shift or a bad shift?"

"Shut up, Newbie, goddammit I'm getting there. Can't you tell this is just about one of the hardest things for me to do?"

"What? Admitting that you care for me?" There was a sudden unexpected edge to the young resident's voice, something Cox was sure he'd never heard before in all their time working together. It sounded like JD was not going to just leap at him like the little love-craving puppy he was in the way that Perry wanted.

Dr Cox looked at the pale, drawn face of his protégé and saw something new and dangerous flourishing there. He wasn't sure he was going to like whatever it was.

"Why is that so hard exactly?" By this point JD was practically spitting. It was odd, he'd spent almost his whole career hoping that one day Perry would learn to like him, accept him as a good doctor and a proper man but now things had changed and he wasn't even sure why. He was turning away the allegiance of Dr Cox. "Why should you suddenly decide now's the time to allow me into your cliquey little world? Is it because I nearly died? After all these years of me waiting on you hand and foot and trying to please you as best I could all it took was for me to keel over and then you'd like me. Well sod that, Perry. I'm my own person and I don't need your sympathy love to help me through hard times. I have my own friends to look after me." JD finished his small speech with a blazing look of fury in his eyes, glad to see that his words had rendered Dr Cox incapable of stringing a sentence together. The older man stood stock still.

"I…I…."

"You what, Dr Cox?" JD was in his groove now, he felt truly powerful.

"I think your getting a little too big for your high heels, Tina," Dr Cox finally managed, the mask of his feelings returning, "Here I was about to tell you that after all this time of you being the irritatingly persistent dog nipping at my heels and me not giving two hoots about your welfare that I finally realised how much you mean too me with your ridiculous day dreams, your annoying questions and unending affections. Almost losing you made me, and the entire hospital, realise that you are the soul of this place and without you we'd be screwed."

There were a few moments of silence.

"Do you mean that?" JD asked quietly.

"No, I just said it because I can," Perry replied just as softly with an underlying sarcastic tone, "You know, considering my way with words when it comes to insulting people its surprising how well I can pull off giving complements without sounding too sissy."

"Hug me?!" JD reached forwards with the infamous grin gracing his lips.

"What? No. I've told you once; I'll tell you again, I don't do hugs!" Dr Cox yelped but then, seeing the crestfallen expression on his protégé's face, let out a huge reluctant sigh and wrapped his arms around the fragile from of JD.

"See, I knew you'd like me in the end."

**One last review please! Just as an overview of what you like and disliked excluding the bad updating! :) Adios!**


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